Geothermal startup Quaise is pioneering a radical approach to rock destruction by utilizing energy beams to melt holes through bedrock. The company´s vision is ambitious: to unlock geothermal energy virtually anywhere on the planet by drilling deeper and more efficiently than traditional methods allow. Advocates believe this technology could be transformative for clean energy, but experts caution that revamping the world’s drilling through advanced physics and engineering may face significant delays and technical barriers.
Artificial Intelligence continues to dominate the tech landscape, with recent debates focusing on ethics, fairness, and broad societal impact. A featured talk at SXSW London, ´Five things you need to know about AI,´ explores the most pressing developments, selected for both their cultural heft and technical depth. Examining real-world deployments, Amsterdam’s struggle to implement fairer welfare Artificial Intelligence demonstrates how even conscientious efforts, aligned with best ethical practices, can run aground when biases persist in unpredictable ways. These challenges highlight the complexities of applying Artificial Intelligence to socially sensitive arenas, raising urgent questions about the very possibility of fair algorithms.
Elsewhere, the newsletter surveys a wide sweep of technology stories shaping global headlines. OpenAI’s data center ventures lag behind expectations, while its new partnership with the UK government aims to boost productivity, though details remain opaque. The race for Artificial Intelligence math supremacy builds, marked by competitions that test the limits of machine reasoning. Other stories note India´s bid for Artificial Intelligence expertise, the expanded surveillance capabilities of crime-tracking apps, and the promise—and pitfalls—of the metaverse for marketers. On a climate-positive note, Swedish startup Stegra is building the world’s first industrial-scale plant for green steel, moving the steel industry toward a future with drastically lower emissions. Altogether, today’s report encapsulates the turbulence and promise driving technology’s present and future.
